---

Published on 10/17/2016

A Licensed Disintegration

By Carsten Haese, James Bennett, Callum Milne, and Nathan Long
This Article from: Nathan Long

Cranial Translation
简体中文 Deutsch Español Français Italiano Pусский

---

Note: This article is over two years old. Information in this article may be out of date due to subsequent Oracle and/or rules changes. Proceed with caution.

Hi everyone, and welcome back to Cranial Insertion. If there's one thing I learned from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it's that "Fire bad; tree pretty". I think I have the "tree pretty" part down, but I need to work on the "fire bad" part, so I figured I'd work on getting a disintegration license. Either one of two things will happen: either I'm going to blow myself up in a wonderful explosion, or I'll learn why fire is so bad. Personally, I'm hoping for the latter, because I'd rather not blow myself up.

Remember, not only do we write weekly articles, but we're also here to answer your Magic rules questions. You can send us short questions at @CranialTweet, while longer questions should be e-mailed to us at moko@cranialinsertion.com . We might even use your question in a future article!

---

Q: My opponent controls a Veteran Motorist and a Renegade Freighter. They activate the crew ability of the Freighter, tapping the Motorist Is there a point where I can cast Essence Extraction targeting the Freighter before it gets the bonus from the Motorist?

A: No, there is not. The Motorist's ability will trigger and will resolve before the crew ability of the Freighter resolves. The Freighter will get +1/+1, but this won't do very much yet since it's not a creature. Once the crew ability resolves, the Freighter is immediately a 5/4 creature, not a 4/3 creature, and your Essence Extraction is not going to deal enough damage to kill it.

---

Q: I activate Dovin Baan's first ability, targeting my opponent's Arborback Stomper. Can they still use the Stomper to crew a vehicle?

A: Sure, they can do that. Dovin Baan's ability prevents them from activating their own abilities, but it can still be tapped to activate other permanent's abilities, like the crew ability of a vehicle. Just note that it's still getting -3/-0, so the Stomper can no longer by itself crew Aradara Express, since it's a 2/4, not a 5/4.

---

Q: I have an Aetherworks Marvel in play, and on my opponent's turn, I activate it, choosing Creeping Mold. Can I cast the Mold, even though it's my opponent's turn?

A: Yep, that's a fine play. Normally, you can only cast a sorcery during your own turn during one of your main phases when the stack is empty. But the Marvel gets around normal timing restriction, since it's telling you to cast it while the ability is resolving. Even though it's your opponent's turn, you'll be able to cast the Mold while the Marvel's activated ability is resolving.

---

Q: I cast Gonti, Lord of Luxury, and I target my opponent, but they only have three cards in their library. What happens?

A: When the ability resolves, you'll do as much as possible. Since they only have three cards in their library, you'll look at those three cards, choose one to exile, and the remaining two cards will be put randomly on the bottom of their empty library.

---

Q: I have Gonti, Lord of Luxury in play, exiling my opponent's Accomplished Automaton. Before I get a chance to cast the Automaton, my opponent kills Gonti. Can I still cast the Automaton?

A: Yes you can! You can cast the exiled card as long as the card remains exiled. You don't need Gonti to be on the battlefield to be able to cast the spell. Even if your opponent removes Gonti, you'll be able to cast the Automaton, since the Automaton is still exiled.

---

Q: I once again have Gonti, Lord of Luxury in play, and I've exiled my opponent's Eternal Scourge. Can they play it from exile?

A: No they cannot. Gonti exiles the card face down, and a face down card in exile has no characteristics or abilities. Even if your opponent knows for sure that the exiled card is Eternal Scourge, since it has no abilities while it's face down, they are unable to cast it.

---

Q: I only have two cards left in my library, but I need a blocker, so I cast Combustible Gearhulk. Can my opponent choose to have me draw three cards and lose the game?

A: Yep, that's a legal choice. It's never an illegal option to draw more cards than you have in your library. Even though you only have two cards in your library, your opponent can still choose the option to make you draw three cards, and since you tried to draw from an empty library, you'll end up losing the game.

---

Q: My opponent has a 1/1 Cultivator of Blades, and attacks me with it and his other creatures. In response to the Cultivator's trigger, I cast Grasp of Darkness, giving it -4/-4 and killing it. What happens when the Cultivator's trigger resolves?

A: One of two things will happen. If they choose to use the ability, the game will use the last known power of the Cultivator to determine what kind of a bonus to give their other creatures. When the Cultivator was last on the battlefield, it's power was -3, so it would end up giving all of their creatures -3/-3. But more than likely, what they will choose to do is not use the ability, meaning their creatures will not get -3/-3. They don't choose whether or not to use the ability until the ability is resolving, so you can't try to cast Grasp of Darkness after they've chosen to use the ability, but before determining the bonus it gives their other creatures.

---

Q: My opponent's only creature is Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger. Can I cast Unlicensed Disintegration targeting Ulamog, just to deal 3 damage to them?

A: Sure, you can do that. Dealing 3 damage to the creature's controller is not reliant upon the creature actually being destroyed by the Disintegration. Ulamog is indestructible, so it won't be destroyed, but as long as you control an artifact, your opponent will still take 3 damage from the Disintegration.

---

Q: I have an Animation Module, five Servo tokens, and a Nissa, Voice of Zendikar in play. I activate Nissa's -2 ability, putting a +1/+1 counter on each of my Servos. How many times does the Module trigger?

A: It triggers five times. Five different permanents had a +1/+1 counter placed on them, so the Module triggers five times. It doesn't matter if those counters are all being placed at the same time, what matters is that five different permanents are getting those counters.

---

Q: I have a Scrapheap Scrounger in my graveyard, and a Servo token I control dies. Can I exile the token to activate the Scrounger's ability and return it to the battlefield?

A: Nope, that doesn't work for a couple of reasons. First off, after the token dies, before you get priority to activate the Scourner's ability, state-based actions are checked, and the game sees a token that's not on the battlefield, so the Servo token ceases to exist. Second, even if the token did hang around long enough to let you activate the Scrounger's ability, a token is not a card, and the Scournger tells you to exile a creature card. In short, tokens don't work with the Scrounger's ability.

---

Q: I have an non-crewed Sky Skiff in play, and I cast Verdurous Gearhulk. Can I crew the Skiff by tapping the Gearhulk and have the Gearhulk put counters on the Skiff?

A: No you cannot. After the Gearhulk resolves, before anyone gets priority, we need to put the Gearhulk's trigger on the stack, and we have to choose targets for the trigger at that time. The Skiff is not a creature yet, so it's not a legal target for the Gearhulk's trigger. You're free to crew it after you've put the trigger on the stack, but it's too late to get counters on the Skiff

---

Q: I have an Eldrazi Mimic in play, and I cast Demolition Stomper. Can I stack the trigger so I can make the Stomper into a creature, then use the Mimic's ability to make the Mimic into a 10/7?

A: Nope, that doesn't work. After the Stomper enters the battlefield, we check to see if anything should trigger. While the Stomper is colorless, it is not a creature yet, so the Mimic's ability will not trigger. Even if you crew the Stomper immediately, it's too late for the Mimic's ability to trigger, and you will not be able to make the Mimic into a 10/7.

---

Q: I have multiple Bomat Couriers on the battlefield, and each one has exiled some cards. If I sacrifice one Bomat Courier, will I get all of the cards that were exiled by both Couriers?

A: No you will not. Each Courier will track the cards it exiled. It won't have access to cards exiled by another Bomat Courier. If you sacrifice one Courier, you'll only get the cards that were exiled by that Courier, not all Couriers.

---

Q: I activate Key to the City, discarding Incorrigible Youths. Can I target the Youths with the Key's ability to make them unblockable for the turn?

A: Nope. You have to choose a target for the Key's ability when you activate it. The Youths won't enter the battlefield until much later (after you've done announcing the Key's ability, resolving the madness trigger from the Youths, and then resolving the Youths spell), so the Youths are not a legal target for the Key's ability.

---

Q: I cast Eldritch Evolution, sacrificing Rashmi, Eternities Crafter. Will I still get Rashmi's trigger?

A: No you will not. Rashmi has to be on the battlefield when the spell becomes cast in order for it to trigger. Rashmi is not on the battlefield when the Evolution becomes cast, so Rashmi will not trigger and you won't get to do anything with the top card of your library.

---

Q: I'm at one life, while my opponent is at three life. I have a Midnight Oil in play. During the cleanup step, I discard a Fiery Temper. Can I kill my opponent with the Temper before I lose a life?

A: Yep, you'll be able to kill your opponent, provided you stack the triggers right. After you've discarded the Temper, there's two triggers waiting to go on the stack: the madness trigger from the Temper that lets you cast it for its madness cost, and the trigger from the Oil that causes you to lose 1 life. Since you control both triggers, you get to choose the order they're put on the stack. If you put the Temper's trigger on the stack last, it will resolve first, and you'll be able to cast the Temper to kill your opponent before you lose a life (and the game) from the Oil's trigger.

---

Q: I control True Believer, and my opponent casts Cataclysmic Gearhulk. Will the Gearhulk's ability affect me?

A: Yes it will. The Gearhulk's ability does not target any player or permanent. Just because you're being affected by the Gearhulk's trigger does not mean that it's targeting you. You will have to choose your permanents that you want to keep and sacrifice the rest, even if you have shroud or hexproof.

---

Q: I cast Madcap Experiment, and 20 cards down, I reveal my first artifact - Platinum Emperion. Will the Emperion prevent me from taking damage from the Experiment?

A: Yes it will. You follow the instructions on the Experiment in the order they're printed on the card. First, you put the revealed artifact onto the battlefield. Then you're dealt damage equal to the number of cards you revealed to the Experiment. But by the time we're dealing the damage, the Emperion is on the battlefield and preventing your life total from changing. You'll be dealt 20 damage, but the Emeperion will prevent your life total from changing and you'll stay at the same life total.

---

Q: I cast Dubious Challenge, and the two creatures I select are Hushwing Gryff and Leveler. How much trouble is my opponent in?

A: They're in a lot of trouble, no matter what they pick. Your opponent could choose to put the Gryff on their side of the battlefield, but by doing that, you'll get Leveler, but its ability will not trigger because of the Gryff's ability, and you get Leveler with no downsides.

Your opponent could instead choose to put Leveler on the battlefield, giving you the Gryff. However, the creatures enter the battlefield one at a time, not both at the same time, so Leveler would enter the battlefield first (causing its ability to trigger), then the Gryff enters the battlefield, and then the Leveler's trigger goes on the stack. Leveler's ability has already triggered by the time the Gryff enters, and the Gryff's ability won't do anything to the trigger that's waiting to go on the stack, so your opponent's library will still end up exiled.

But there's a third option: they could choose to take nothing, and give you both creatures. But both of those creatures will enter the battlefield at the same time, and right after Leveler and the Gryff enter, we check to see if anything should trigger. But since the Gryff is on the battlefield, it will once again prevent Leveler's ability from triggering.

So no matter what option your opponent picks, it's not going to end well for them.

---

Well, I'm all burned out now after those question. We'll see you all next week!

---